Calico Beans is a hearty dish made in a Crockpot with a number of cans of beans, bacon, floor beef, and brown sugar tomato sauce. It is extremely straightforward to place collectively dinner. This facet dish doesn’t take a very long time to arrange, and you’ll maintain it heat in a sluggish cooker, it’s the excellent addition to summer season picnics or recreation day watch events!
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Cowboy Calico Beans
It really is a disgrace that beans get such a nasty rap. Effectively-prepared bean dishes are nutritious, cheap, and, most of all, scrumptious. This Calico Beans recipe showcases an enormous number of beans in a candy and tangy gentle sauce that, when mixed, delivers a one-of-a-kind style.
Including bacon and floor beef, you possibly can simply serve Calico Beans as a whole one-pot meal or pair it along with your favourite starch for an much more satisfying supper.
A Bean Lover’s Journey
Rising up within the Midwest, potlucks weren’t full and not using a huge sluggish cooker stuffed with Calico Beans. Named after the multicolored calico cat, this hearty dish combines a rainbow of beans with savory meats and a sweet-tangy sauce that transforms humble substances into pure consolation meals. What began as a cattle drive staple has developed right into a beloved household meal that’s each economical and scrumptious.
Why This Recipe Works
- Good for potlucks and huge gatherings
- One-pot meal that’s excellent for busy weeknights
- Funds-friendly but protein-rich
- Make-ahead pleasant and freezer appropriate
- Customizable warmth and taste ranges
Meat Makes It a Meal
The bottom beef and bacon flip this facet dish into one thing hearty to function the primary course. When choosing the meat for this recipe, search for one thing that brings a variety of taste to the pot.
Purchase thick-cut or, higher but, slab bacon and reduce it into medium-sized chunks. Large items not solely maintain as much as lengthy and sluggish simmering however supply diners substantial bites of smoky goodness.
You don’t have to stay with floor beef. Pork, rooster, turkey, or wild recreation wouldn’t be misplaced on this recipe. A very good substitution is Cajun-style bulk sausage meat for many who need an additional spicy kick.
Making This Calico Beans Recipe Vary-Worthy
Calico baked beans are typically known as cowboy beans as a result of they had been a staple on lengthy cattle drives. Since water was typically scarce on the plains, cooks began utilizing leftover espresso to boil their beans. This waste-not-want-not strategy not solely solved the issue at hand however imparted a fancy style to the recipe.
You may recreate this taste through the use of immediate espresso. Add half the quantity of immediate espresso essential to make one cup of espresso to the beans after they go into the crockpot. Stir to mix.
Ideas for Making, Serving, and Storing Calico Beans
- Sure, you possibly can freeze this calico bean recipe! Put leftover beans in a freezer-safe container. Be certain that to depart a bit further room to permit for the meals to develop when frozen. Don’t overlook to label the container with the date. Beans ought to final for about three months.
- Reheat the beans within the oven. Let the beans thaw within the fridge in a single day. Put thawed beans in an oven-safe container, cowl with aluminum foil and reheat in a 250-degree oven for about 45 minutes.
- Don’t overlook your favourite toppings and sides. Sprinkle on shredded cheese, chopped onions, pickled jalapeno slices, or sliced inexperienced onions. Serve with a chunk of cornbread, collard greens, coleslaw, white rice, or corn on the cob.
- Do it’s worthwhile to drain the beans first? No, you don’t want to empty the beans first. The ultimate beans are very thick, and it’s possible you’ll wish to add some further water. I usually open a can of beans, and I look and see if the water within the can tremendous starchy (the liquid might be cloudy), if sure, I drain. If not, I don’t drain the beans.
Take a look at our different fabulous bean dishes on YouTube!
Calico Beans Crockpot Recipe
A colourful medley of tasty beans is smothered in a straightforward, made-from-scratch BBQ-ish sauce and cooked to flavorful perfection in a crockpot.
I desire to cook dinner my beans in a crockpot, in order that they don’t burn. The feel appears to be higher as effectively this fashion.
Recipe Elements
Right here’s an inventory of what you want:
- Floor beef – gives a hearty texture and wealthy taste
- Bacon – provides smokiness and depth
- Onion – creates fragrant basis
- Garlic – provides important savory notes
- Canned baked beans – present candy base and thick sauce
- Canned kidney beans – add agency texture and earthy taste
- Canned pinto beans – contribute creamy texture
- Canned butter beans – present delicate, buttery taste
- Canned navy beans – add gentle, tender texture
- Canned three bean salad – contributes ta angy selection
- Brown sugar – creates caramelized sweetness
- Ketchup – provides tomato tang and thickness
- Honey – gives pure sweetness
- White vinegar – balances sweetness with acidity
- Dry mustard – provides delicate warmth and depth
Learn how to Make Calico Beans
Calico beans don’t take a lot time to prep. They will also be made forward of time and style even higher the subsequent day. Move me the recent sauce and a giant plate of those beans!
- In a skillet over medium warmth, sauté floor beef, chopped bacon, chopped onion, and minced garlic till the bottom beef has browned. Drain if desired.
- Add all of the beans to the crockpot.
- Add brown sugar, ketchup, honey, vinegar, and dry mustard to the crockpot. Stir effectively.
- Cook dinner on low warmth for two hours.
Recipe Ideas and Variations
Bean Choice Ideas
- Don’t drain beans except liquid could be very cloudy
- Be happy to swap bean varieties based mostly on desire
- For further warmth, add Ranch Fashion Beans with jalapeños
Meat Variations
- Substitute Italian sausage for floor beef
- Use contemporary Mexican chorizo for a spicy twist
- Attempt floor turkey or pork for lighter choices
The Cowboy Contact
- Contemplate wild recreation meat for rustic attraction
- Add 1/2 tablespoon immediate espresso for genuine vary taste
- Use thick-cut bacon for heartier texture
Storage and Reheating Leftovers
Fridge Storage
- Retailer in an hermetic container
- Retains for 3-4 days
- Flavors enhance in a single day
Freezer Storage
- Freeze for as much as 3 months
- Depart enlargement room within the container
- Label with date
- Thaw in a single day within the fridge
Reheating Directions
- Oven methodology (most popular):
- Thaw utterly
- Cowl with foil
- Warmth at 250°F for 45 minutes
- Sluggish cooker methodology:
- Low warmth for 1-2 hours
- Stir sometimes
- Add water if wanted
Hungry for extra bean recipes? Give these a strive!
Favourite Crockpot Sluggish Cooker Recipes
Take a look at extra of my straightforward recipes for dinner and the very best Crockpot recipes right here on CopyKat!
Calico Beans
These Calico beans a hearty sufficient to make an entire meal.
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Price
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Servings: 8
Energy: 647kcal
Elements
- 1 pound floor beef
- 1/2 pound bacon sliced into small items
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 14 ounces baked beans
- 14 ounces kidney beans
- 14 ounces pinto beans
- 14 ounces butter beans
- 14 ounces navy beans
- 14 ounces three bean salad use half the juice
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
Directions
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In a skillet over medium warmth, sauté floor beef, chopped bacon, chopped onion, and minced garlic till the bottom beef has browned. Drain if desired.
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Add all of the beans to the crockpot.
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Add brown sugar, ketchup, honey, vinegar, and dry mustard to the crockpot. Stir effectively.
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Cook dinner on low warmth for two hours.
Notes
Variations:
- You may add Ranch Fashion Beans with jalapeno peppers this may add a pleasant bit of warmth to the recipe.
- You may omit the ketchup and honey if need.
- Swap the bottom beef for Italian sausage.
Diet
Energy: 647kcal | Carbohydrates: 89g | Protein: 32g | Fats: 19g | Saturated Fats: 6g | Ldl cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 556mg | Potassium: 1446mg | Fiber: 23g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 85IU | Vitamin C: 5.4mg | Calcium: 147mg | Iron: 8mg
